


It's Been Too Long.

by LoganThrives (LadyAnatares)



Category: Mystic Messenger (Video Game), Shall We Date?: Obey Me!
Genre: Crossover, Engagement, F/M, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Fluff and Angst, Gen, Genderfluid Character, Logan is AFAB, Love Triangles, M/M, Multi, POV Second Person, Self-Indulgent, Self-Insert, Spoilers, Suggestive Themes, hence the tag, possible violence later?
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-22
Updated: 2021-03-02
Packaged: 2021-03-10 23:21:26
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 12
Words: 16,590
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28235343
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LadyAnatares/pseuds/LoganThrives
Summary: I recently bought Ray's after ending DLC in Mystic Messenger and have been playing that, but after literally three years it's a bit awkward for me because I've switched fandoms entirely and like, moved on?? So, this fic is spawned from that. I'm using my Logan self-insert OC from my main fic, The Devil You Don't, and inserting them into the mess that is the Ray DLC so that they can solve problems chaotically and with demons as backup.Spoilers for TDYD if you haven't read it yet as well as the Ray after ending DLC. Updates are whenever I feel like it, so don't ask!
Relationships: Choi Saeran/Original Character(s), Diavolo (Shall We Date?: Obey Me!)/Original Character(s), Lucifer (Shall We Date?: Obey Me!)/Original Character(s)
Comments: 12
Kudos: 12





	1. Surprise Meeting.

“… Ana?”

You blink at the packages of noodles you happen to be looking at in the supermarket in mild confusion. That voice is familiar, but he couldn’t be calling out to you, could he?

“Ana!” he calls again. This time you turn your head around, and _gasp_.

“Ra- … _Saeran??_ ” you stammer in shock.

He comes up to you and gently pulls you into his chest in a tender hug. “I’ve missed you so much…”

“How- When did you- I have _so_ many questions,” you say, accepting the embrace.

“I’m sorry, Ana,” he shudders, fighting back tears. “I’m so sorry that it took me so long to come back to you.”

Then he takes your chin in his hand, smiling down at you as his mouth closes in on yours.

“Saeran, _wait!_ There’s something I need to tell- _Mmph!_ ”

“… Logan?”

“ _Dia!_ ” you pull away, flustered and embarrassed out of your mind. You grip Saeran’s arm tightly so that he can’t leave your sight – it’s been so long, after all, and you need to catch up and find out how he’s doing – but you need to address this messy situation first.

“Who is this?” Diavolo asks, holding the block of cheese you sent him to get.

“Saeran, this is Diavolo, my- My fiancé,” you sigh awkwardly. “Diavolo, Saeran.”

He starts in shock, putting a hand over his mouth, then bowing in apology. “I’m so sorry sir. I’ve just… It’s been so long since I’ve seen Ana, I just couldn’t help myself.”

Diavolo laughs good naturedly. “That’s quite alright. This is hardly the first time that’s happened.”

“… Eh?” Saeran starts.

You spin on your heels, red-faced and fists clenched. “Dia _volo!_ ”

“Perhaps we should invite him over for some tea?” your future husband suggests amicably as ever. “It sounds like you two have a lot of catching up to do.”

“I don’t know if I should impose…” Saeran backs off.

“No!” you refuse, gripping his sleeve as he tries to turn away. “Stay. It’s been three years, Saeran. I want to know how you’ve been.”

“But, I just-”

You roll your eyes. “It’s fine. I should have seen that coming anyway, what with how close we were back then.”

“I’m sorry it’s taken me so long, Ana,” he sighs mournfully.

“He calls you Ana?” Diavolo notes with interest. “I didn’t realize you had another name you went by before Logan.”

“Uhh, _yeah_ ,” you fret. “That was my name in the messenger we used to talk with each other.”

“So… It’s Logan now?” Saeran realizes.

“… It’s been three years,” you shrug awkwardly. “I’ve uh, changed. A lot.”

“I don’t believe that for a second,” Saeran grins. “You’re still as wonderful as ever.”

“Oh my _gods_ , you’re gunna kill me if you start talking like that,” you fluster.

“So, I guess I missed my chance at proposing to you, huh? That's too bad.” he says, nodding towards Diavolo. “Congratulations, I suppose. How did you two meet?”

“UHHH- Well, don’t get mad,” you plead. “But… We met when he, I _guess_ , kidnapped me to Hell? And, a _lot_ happened, and just recently he proposed we have a diplomatic marriage in his bid to unite the three worlds.”

Saeran looks at you in disbelief, then at Diavolo, a heavy sigh leaving him.

Then he grabs you by the arm and starts walking away, dragging you along with him as you flail and protest.

“Wh- _Hey!!_ ”

“I can’t believe you got yourself involved with another cult while I was gone,” he mutters grumpily.

“It’s not a cult this time, it’s the real deal! I was in Hell for a year!” you protest.

“That’s worse though,” he looks at you over his shoulder in disbelief as he continues trying to rescue you. “You _do_ realize how that’s worse, right?”


	2. Catching Up.

“You’re not quite what I pictured when I used to think about the devil,” Saeran muses over a cup of tea, having finally calmed down enough to catch up with you and Dia back at your house. “Part of me still wonders whether this isn’t some sort of deception.”

“I promise he’s safe,” you try to reassure him, gripping his hand where he rests it on his leg. “Diavolo protected me and made _sure_ that no harm came to me the whole time I was there. He’s actually one of the nicest, most genuine people I’ve ever met.”

He looks at you and smiles, letting out a small huff of concern nonetheless. You don’t think he’ll ever be fully convinced of that, what with everything the two of you went through together.

“I must admit, it is very shocking to me that Logan went through all of that before we summoned her to the Devildom,” Diavolo muses sternly. “So, you were kidnapped to a cult by Saeran under the pretense of testing a phone app? But, you managed to convince him to escape with you and turn against them.”

“She saved my life,” Saeran insists. “I owe everything to A- … To Logan.”

“Did you ever track down Saeyoung?” you ask worriedly.

“Actually,” he says, setting down his tea and taking out his phone. “That’s the reason why I’m back in town.”

He opens up a garbled text message, a small decryption app briefly running across the screen before clearing and showing the decoded message.

“… They have Saeyoung,” your heart drops. “And they want you, too.”

“They’ve been fighting the RFA in the media for years, trying to undo the political damage our announcement did to my father,” he informs you. “We never did send the second announcement, but this… This complicates things. My father has the help of some secret agency, who apparently is holding my brother hostage. I think it may be the one he worked for, so they’re extremely dangerous and I…” he sighs. “I don’t know what to do.”

Your instinct to comfort him overtakes you, and you grip his arm and lean into his shoulder, pressing the side of your head against his. He puts his hand over yours, holding you in place.

“Logan?”

You sit upright again, looking at Diavolo with a pleading expression.

“I know,” he smiles warmly. “If I’ve learned a single thing about you over the past year, then I already know what’s going through your mind right now.”

“So…”

“Go ahead,” he nods. “Do what you need to.”

You grin at him broadly, tears gathering at the corners of your eyes. You turn to Saeran, gripping his hand in both of yours.

“How can I help?” you ask.

* * *

“So Diavolo can’t actually get involved in human world affairs because of our cease-fire with the Celestial Realm,” you explain. “Interfering with human destiny is forbidden, so we don’t have his support. However, I _do_ have a bit of leeway since I’m a human with pacts over a few demons – if I’m legitimately in danger I can summon them for my defense. But until something like that happens, we have to figure this out our own way.”

“It’s still disturbing that you were actually in Hell,” he frowns, gripping your hand tightly as you ascend the steps to the C&R building together. “How are you still such a magnet for trouble?”

“Hey, you’re just salty that he stole your move,” you bump into him playfully.

He chuckles at that, pulling open the door and letting you through ahead of him. “Yeah, I… I guess he _did_ , heh.”

“So we’re meeting with everyone today?” you breathe, stopping briefly at reception to sign his name and pick up a security badge. “Hey, do you work here or something?” you ask, curious at the interaction.

“Sort of. I help the C&R intelligence unit with their information gathering on the Prime Minister,” he explains, looping the lanyard with the badge around his neck. “I usually do so remotely, but I come in every so often to meet with the team.”

“That’s… Hey, you’re making a place for yourself in the world. That’s great!” you smile proudly at him.

Saeran laughs awkwardly at that. “Yeah, I suppose I am.”

He takes you over to the elevators, swiping past the gate and holding it open for you.

“It’s been _forever_ since I saw everyone,” you sigh. “I kind of lost touch with them when you dropped off the map.”

“I wish we could all see each other under better circumstances,” he laments.

“Me too. But hey,” you say. “Maybe we can find some small joy in this, right? And we’re going to get your brother back. I just know it.”

He opens his hand for yours and you take it. You smile up at him as he breathes a calming breath.

“When I hear you say it, I feel like it has to be true,” he hums warmly.

“It is. We’ll stop at nothing to save him, so I know we will.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Shifting everything forward by three years is making this slightly tricky to write lmao.


	3. Human World Affairs.

“Lord Diavolo, I see you are back from the human world earlier than scheduled.”

Diavolo looks up from his paperwork, smiling brightly at his visitor. “Ah, yes, our visit was cut short actually.”

“I came to drop these off for your review before they get sent off,” Lucifer explains, offering him a stack of completed paperwork. “If you are home, then is Logan in her room?”

“Logan stayed behind, actually,” Diavolo says, setting his dip pen aside and accepting the paperwork, glancing it over. “She ran into an old friend who needed her help.”

“What sort of help?” he asks, surprised.

“It sounds like his twin brother was taken by a dangerous secret agency, since he and his brother are the illegitimate children of the prime minister,” the prince hums. “Oh, did you know that Logan was once kidnapped by a cult? It turns out that that was how they first met.”

Lucifer furrows his brow skeptically at his Lord. “That sounds like the plot to one of Leviathan’s human world mangas…” he notes.

“It does, doesn’t it?” Diavolo laughs. “But no, I could tell that everything he said was the truth.”

“And you just… Let her go with him??”

“You know Logan as well as I do,” he smiles. “Once she sets her mind to helping someone, she won’t back down. I couldn’t tell her not to follow her heart. That’s part of what makes her soul so pure, after all.”

This is true, he remembers, with how hard you fought against him in order to free Belphegor. He’d threatened your life a handful of times over the matter before he even knew that that was your goal.

Then he’s stricken with the memory of what happened to you once you had actually succeeded… The wound, the blood on the floor…

“… My Lord,” Lucifer grits his teeth. “Is it really wise to leave Logan to handle something like that on her own?”

“You know that I cannot personally interfere with the human world and its affairs,” he sighs, leaning back in his chair. “Besides, her ring and the young man I met today will both keep her safe. His heart was easy enough to read – he’s quite taken with my fiancée, even after all this time.”

“… Pardon??”

“They haven’t seen each other in three years, but he’s held on to those feelings the whole time,” Diavolo closes his eyes, blushing at the memory of the kiss you shared with the handsome young stranger. “Isn’t it romantic? Ah, to be young again.”

“Lord Diavolo,” Lucifer bites off. “I would like to personally ensure Logan’s safety on her mission.” And prevent any more _dalliances_ with this unknown human man wherever possible, he adds quietly.

“No, I must forbid it.”

“But, Lord Diavolo-”

“Logan promised to use her pacts if she senses that she is in real danger – her ring also keeps us connected in a way, so that I can sense her status and whether or not she has been harmed,” Diavolo explains. Then he gets a teasing grin on his face. “It’s too bad you never made a pact with her properly, isn’t it Lucifer? She can call each of your brothers for their support as she desires, but not you.”

He sighs in resignation at that.

“There must be something I can do,” the Avatar of Pride frets, _hating_ this sense of helplessness and forced restraint.

“She has her D.D.D. with her – you can try asking if there is anything, but don’t be surprised if the answer is no,” the prince claims. “It sounds like a very sensitive situation. For now, though, all we can do to support her is wait.”

* * *

On the long elevator ride up you compare notes with Saeran as he re-installs the RFA app onto your phone.

“… I don’t think I trust V,” you say once you catch up on the message logs. “He disappeared when Rika did, right? And then, in the chatroom from this morning he just, sounded _really_ shady, I don’t know.”

“I’m not sure how I feel about him yet either,” Saeran admits.

“For now,” you sigh. “Can you… Keep calling me Ana? And… Don’t mention my fiancé or who he is. Let me handle that. If V isn’t legit, I don’t want him knowing about him.”

“That makes sense, but… Are you sure you want me to call you Ana?” he asks, concerned.

“It feels like sandpaper being rubbed on my brain to be called that again,” you confess, gripping your arm with your opposite hand uncomfortably. “But, everyone is going to call me Ana anyways, and, well… There _might_ have been a couple of articles published about my engagement to Diavolo with my name as Logan.”

“So, the less information we give him the better,” Saeran nods. “I agree. We should keep what we can to ourselves.”

Maybe your name can be a codeword. “If anything should happen,” you say. “Like, if the app gets hacked or we think our calls might be getting bugged, use Ana if you’re not sure if it’s safe or not. But when you ARE sure that it’s safe to talk, use Logan. Sound fair?”

He says nothing, just smiles at you with that smile that makes you weak. Heat races to your cheeks as you have to look away from him. It’s like having the sun bearing down on you on the hottest day of the year.

“ _What?_ ” you demand, flustered.

“Ahaha, nothing,” he grins.

You hear your D.D.D. ping in your bag, but the elevator door opens just then so you decide to check it later.

Walking to the meeting room together hand in hand, you realize how quiet it is.

“Where is everyone?” you ask of the empty offices.

“Ah, Jumin said something about a fire alarm earlier,” Saeran remembers. “Maybe they just haven’t returned to this floor yet after the all clear.”

You suppose that might be true. After all, it’s the second-to-topmost floor of the very tall C&R building.

Saeran finds the meeting room and holds open the door for you to walk through ahead of him, and once you do, there are four new smiling faces there to greet you.

“Ana!” Yoosung cheers. “We haven’t seen you in forever! What happened to you? Did you go into hiding like Saeyoung?”

“Yoosung, try not to bombard her with questions the moment she walks in the door,” Zen scolds him idly. “It is good to see you though. How have you been?”

“You dropped out of contact three years ago,” Jumin observes. “There were a few theories circulating the messenger for a while as to why.”

“Oh, well,” you say, taking out your cellphone and holding it up. “My old phone with the app just up and died, actually, and it was cheaper at the time to replace it with a new phone than to fix it. And, since I didn’t have any other way of reaching out besides the app to get it re-installed, I just sort of… Left it. I’m sorry if I made anyone worry.”

Jumin tsks at you. “You should have come to see me for a new phone,” he insists. “Saeran has been working with us for the past few years, even while he was searching for his brother. We could have set you up with a new phone with the app installed at any point.”

“You know that you’re always welcome here, right Ana?” Jaehee offers, giving you a small, tired smile.

“I thought you would have quit working for this slavedriver Jaehee,” you say bluntly, jerking a thumb over at Jumin. “Why are _you_ still here?”

She lets out a tiny, exasperated sigh. “I couldn’t leave when there was still work to be done,” she admits. “Saeyoung had escaped and gone into hiding, Saeran had gone to find him, and someone had to head the intelligence unit in their absence.”

“You’re as married to your work as ever,” you hum, smiling at her. “Jumin, please give this woman a vacation.”

“She has a vacation every Saturday,” he counters, completely unphased. “But perhaps I can send her with Elizabeth the 3rd. Her presence and elegant beauty is like a vacation for the senses.”

A frazzled Jaehee sighs dejectedly.

“Oi!” Zen scolds. “Babysitting that _hairball_ for you isn’t a vacation! _Man_ , my allergies are acting up just thinking about it!” he sniffles.

You laugh, brushing some hair out of your face. “None of you have changed one bit, have you?”

“Whoa! Ana!” Yoosung gasps. “Where did you get that ring?”

Oh, _crap_. Right, you’re still wearing your engagement ring. “Uh…”

Zen comes around to Saeran and claps a hand on his shoulder. “You move fast, huh?” he congratulates him. “You’re finally reunited just this morning and you’ve already put a ring on her? Hah! I don’t blame you one bit.”

“ _Uhh-_ ”

“That’s right,” Saeran confirms, taking your hand in both of his and tenderly kissing the backs of your knuckles while you fluster. “I let go of her once, I couldn’t bear the thought of doing so again.”

“That’s so romantic,” Jaehee smiles proudly at the two of you.

“You two are always so happy and sweet together,” Yoosung observes. “I wish I could find someone who loves me that much,” he moans.

“True love is hard to come by,” Jumin nods seriously. “You two should make each other very happy. I support your engagement.”

“They don’t need your blessing, CEO-in-line,” Zen chastizes him.

… _Oooh_ , when did he become such a troublemaker?? Suddenly he distinctly reminds you of Belphie. But, you realize, you can’t exactly tell them the truth of it – after all, you had _just_ finished telling him in the elevator to keep your engagement a secret for now! Is _this_ how he plans to approach that?

“Ana, my angel,” he coos softly. “I can’t wait for us to spend the rest of our lives together.”

You can’t come up with a response that supports this roleplay, so you just cover your blushing face and scream internally.

“… Am I interrupting something?”

“Ah, V,” Jumin nods towards his friend. “Thank you for joining us.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just for context in case you don't read my Obey Me fics with my OC in them - Logan is engaged to Diavolo but they aren't romantic, and he gave her a magic ring that has a lot of undisclosed but powerful enchantments on it to keep her safe in his absence. Lucifer and Logan don't see eye to eye, as Logan detests his domineering personality and Lucifer finds her extremely rebellious, but he loves her selfishly. Logan has a pact with each of the brothers save for him, because he tried to form a reverse pact on her so that he could summon her and force her obedience - her ring has since been updated to prevent that, but she still couldn't summon him even if she wanted to.
> 
> Also yeah, Diavolo is totally chill about guys flirting with and being in love with Logan - the seven brothers already all love her and she loves them, but she is very clear about her loyalty to him even though her feelings are so complicated.
> 
> Also, I don't quite know how this turned into a fake dating AU thing with Saeran but it made sense to my brain that he would totally take advantage of the situation - wearing a giant rock on your hand but we can't talk about your fiance? Okay, _I'm_ your fiance now :D


	4. Bedside Manner.

You clutch at the back of his shirt as the smoke fills the room, coughing hard from the gas with tears welling in your eyes. You’ve pulled the collar of your shirt up over your nose and mouth, holding it tightly in place with your hand, but you know it’s only a matter of time as the world starts to get fuzzy. The other RFA members have dropped like flies from the gas attack, leaving only Saeran, V, and yourself standing.

“Ana? Ana?!” Saeran panics, turning and holding you by your waist tight against his body. You had both moved away as soon as you saw the blue smoke spilling from that device, reminding you both all too well of the elixir back at Mint Eye. “Are you alright? Stay with me, Ana!”

“The gas doesn’t seem to be affecting you,” V notes, a mixture of nervousness and gentle disappointment. “That’s too bad. I was going to take you, and only you, to meet your brother.”

“What have you done, V?!” he demands, helping you down to the floor as you start to lose your footing. He lays you out with your head in his lap, and you grip his hand with all your strength, even though you know you’re only getting weaker by the second.

“The gas will put them to sleep for a while,” he explains softly. “But there are no harmful ingredients in it. You can check the contents of it for yourself. I don’t know why it didn’t affect you, though.”

“I must have built up an immunity to the herbs from taking the elixir,” Saeran remembers.

“Listen to me, Saeran,” V pleads. “I need you, and _only_ you, to come to this address within the day. The Prime Minister has Saeyoung.”

“What?” he gasps.

“His life is on the line. You need to hurry,” V insists. “I have to leave now. Make sure you get there in time.”

That’s the last thing you hear before darkness takes you.

* * *

“Why hasn’t she responded to my message?” Lucifer grumbles.

“Maybe she is just busy with her task, Lucifer,” Diavolo reassures him. “It has only been a couple of minutes.”

He glares down at his D.D.D. as if doing so will force you to respond to him faster.

“… Lucifer,” the prince says, suddenly shocked. His dip pen falls from his hand to the floor.

“What is it?” he asks, standing from his chair.

“Logan just went unconscious,” Diavolo reveals, clearly shocked at the revelation.

“… **What?** ”

“I don’t know how that is possible,” he continues. “The ring _should_ have countered any attack against her, but… If it was an indirect attack, perhaps, or if there was no intention of harming her… I admit, I didn’t anticipate this.”

“Lord Diavolo-!” he pleads.

“Yes, go to the human world and find out what has happened to her at once,” he agrees, taking his D.D.D. from a pocket and tossing it to his friend. Lucifer catches it easily. “There is an app on there that can track her D.D.D. Hopefully she still has it with her.”

Lucifer turns on his heel and heads for the door.

“Oh, and Lucifer.”

He turns. “Yes, Lord Diavolo?”

Diavolo regards him with a stern expression. “You are not to kill or injure any humans, _regardless_ of their level of involvement in what happened to Logan,” he insists. “Also, do not interfere with her mission if at all possible.”

He grits his teeth. “Of course, my Lord.”

* * *

His relief is palpable when he discovers that the signal from your D.D.D. is coming from a nearby human hospital.

“I am looking for _____ _____, though she often goes by the name Logan,” he greets at the reception desk. “I heard that she was admitted at this hospital this morning. What room may I find her in?”

“Oh, you must be her father,” the busy nurse at the desk figures. “She’s in 405. Take the elevator to the fourth floor and then go right. Her fiancé is already with her.”

… _Fiancé??_

“Thank you very much,” he nods, heading for the elevator.

“Uh… Sarah?” another nurse at the desk says, spinning her chair towards her colleague.

“Yes?”

“That patient was only just admitted about an hour ago,” she points out. “They were still looking her over just a few minutes ago. I don’t think we’ve even called her emergency contacts yet.”

“Oh, let me check that out,” she says, bringing up your file. “Uh… Oops.”

“What?”

“It says that her emergency contact is her aunt,” she realizes. “Not her parents. In fact, she’s left instructions to specifically deny them access.”

“… You should call security,” she suggests, frowning.

“I’m already dialing,” she says, putting the phone to her ear.

* * *

“Logan?”

A young man looks up from where he sits at your bedside, holding his phone in one hand and your hand in his other.

“Who are you?” he asks warily. “The guards, did they-”

“What have you **done** to her?!” Lucifer demands.

He stands from his chair, putting himself bodily in between him and you, but the demon grips him by the collar.

“I don’t know who you are, but-” he struggles, unable to break the demon’s much stronger grip.

“There he is!” someone shouts behind them.

Lucifer turns just as two men in security uniforms grab his arms and pull them behind him, trying to take him out of the room. He’s significantly stronger than both of them combined, but if he resists too strongly then he could end up seriously injuring them. He’s forced to release his hold on the young man in order to regain his footing.

“Wait…”

Everyone freezes at the sound of your voice, the room suddenly silent enough to hear a pin drop. The young man wheels around in place, kneeling on the chair at your bedside and taking your hand in both of his. Lucifer uses the distraction to shrug off the security guards.

“Logan! Logan, you’re awake!” Saeran cries. “It’s a miracle!”

You struggle to lift your head and open your eyes, but once you do you drop your head back on the pillow with a sigh. “What… What are _you_ doing here?” you ask of the demon in the room.

“Your fiancé sent me because he sensed you were in trouble,” he explains.

“Wait – isn’t _that_ guy her fiancé?” one of the guards asks, confused.

“I can’t move my body,” you struggle. “Saeran, can you call them off?”

“You know this man?” he asks, concerned for you.

“Yeah… Yeah, I know him,” you confirm weakly. “He’s safe… Stand down, or whatever.”

The guards finally disperse as Lucifer comes to the other side of your bed, taking your available hand in his. “What happened?” he demands.

“V betrayed us… I _knew_ I had a bad feeling about him,” you mumble out. “Wait – Saeran, where is… The RFA, are they…?!”

“They’re still asleep,” he soothes you, brushing some hair gently away from your face. “They’re here in the hospital too – all of them. Don’t worry, they’re safe.”

“How long was I out?” you blink.

“Just over an hour,” Saeran informs you. “I’m surprised you woke up first. We don’t know how long it will take for the others.” Then he sighs heavily. “And there’s more – a lot has happened within the last hour. C&R is under cyber-attack, the news is saying the RFA lied in our broadcast, and… And Saeyoung is in danger,” he frowns.

You try to sit up, but you can’t do much more than lift your head slightly off the pillow. “This is so frustrating,” you stress.

“Don’t – you’re in no condition,” he says, gripping your hand tighter in his.

“No, you are _not_ ,” Lucifer determines, standing at your bedside. “In fact, I’ve come to bring you home.”

“What?! _No!_ ”

You start crying at your own helplessness as he shuffles your limp body out of bed, intending to carry you out. Saeran jumps from the chair and hits the emergency call button on the wall, summoning a doctor and hopefully the security guards again, then he stands in the demon’s way.

“Lucifer!” you yell. “ _Stop!_ ”

“ _Lucifer??_ ” Saeran’s eyes are as wide as saucers. “ _The_ Lucifer? Logan, just how many demons do you know?”

He holds you against his chest with your face pressed into his shoulder just as a doctor and the two guards from earlier fill out the doorframe. He sighs irritably at the sight. He can’t use magic or his demon form here – it is forbidden by the cease-fire with the Celestial Realm. And he absolutely can’t risk any harm to you in trying to force his way through.

“I- I _command_ you,” you sniffle against him, your voice small and pained. “I may not have a pact with you, but… But I’m _still_ your future Queen. And I can summon your brothers to stop you. I _will_ summon them, _all_ of them, right here and _now_.”

Saeran gulps. “Future Queen…?”

Sighing again, he decides to lay you back down on the hospital bed. The doctor comes over to check your IV that was jostled while Saeran makes sure that you’re comfortable again.

“ _Fine_ ,” Lucifer groans. “But I am not going to leave your side so long as you are in danger. So, one or both of you should tell me everything that’s going on. **Now**.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Damn, I missed pasting in the whole first part when I initially posted this, my bad! It kind of works without it but I still had to go back and fix it.


	5. No Need For a Saviour.

“I still don’t understand why you need to be involved in _any_ of this,” Lucifer frowns.

You’ve managed to regain more control over your body, so you’re sat up in bed with a tray of food that Saeran went to get from the cafeteria, eating it slowly as your hands are still a bit numb and shaky. You helped Saeran explain the situation to Lucifer from beginning to end, even including his past and Rika, what she’d done to him, V and his involvement, and what little you know about the agency Saeyoung used to work for.

“Saeyoung needs our help,” you begin explaining slowly. “And Saeran needs my support. He, my friends… The RFA, I care about them and I want to help.”

“This is far too dangerous for you to handle alone,” he insists.

“You don’t get to decide that for me,” you snap back.

“Logan-”

“And _clearly_ Diavolo’s protection works if _you_ showed up here out of the blue,” you add bitterly.

“I’m sorry to keep her away,” Saeran apologizes sheepishly, resting his head on the side of the hospital bed, his arms folded up underneath him as he looks up at you. “Really, I am. But with Logan here, I feel like I can finally think. I feel like I can figure out a way to bring my brother back safe.”

“We don’t have a lot of time, do we?” you point out.

“According to V, I need to meet my father at the address he sent me within a day, or else they will kill Saeyoung,” Saeran says defeatedly.

“That’s a trap,” you refuse. “If you walk in there they might just kill you both on the spot.”

“V seems to think that if I go with them, they will use us to dispel the bad press the RFA brought up against him, and then keep us alive for the purposes of safeguarding his re-election campaign.”

“That’s not a life – Saeran, you _can’t_ ,” you plead. “You and Saeyoung have already been through too much.”

“We may not have much of a choice,” he sighs heavily.

You press your hand against his wrist, hoping to provide some small comfort in your weakened state. “There is _always_ a choice,” you assure him.

Lucifer watches the two of you with interest. He’s still digesting all of the information you’ve given him and debating when and where to step in, but apart from taking you back to the Devildom, he’s not sure how he can be of any help in your endeavours. Your adversaries are many, the situation is precarious, and, knowing you, you are determined to remain right in the centre of it no matter what.

Then you hear your phone make a familiar pinging sound.

“Oh, Lucifer,” you say, turning to the demon on your other side. “Can you grab my phone out of my bag for me? Please? It’s on the floor behind your chair.

He turns and looks for it, finding your bag and retrieving the first thing out of it that he sees, offering it to you. It’s your D.D.D.

“Hmm? What is that?” Saeran perks up.

“ _Oh_ ,” you chuckle softly. “My _human_ phone, actually. Not that one.”

“Ah,” he nods, setting it at your side on the bed and finding your cellphone in the purple case. He offers that one to you next.

“Thanks.”

“You have two phones?” Saeran asks.

“The other one is my D.D.D.,” you explain, unlocking your phone. “It’s connected to a different network so I can keep in touch with Diavolo, Lucifer, and his brothers.”

“… May I see it?” he asks, reaching across you for it.

“Uh… Maybe later,” you grumble. “Sorry, it’s just… Rika’s in the messenger.”

“Eh?” Saeran panics. “I banned her and V, how did she get in??”

“I think she had help – it looks like it’s been hacked,” you frown. “This bitch-”

He takes out his own phone and starts plugging away trying to figure out the breach, that look of pure concentration overtaking his face and even his posture.

“I’m going to talk to her,” you tell him. “And by talk to her, I mean chew her the hell out.”

“Go ahead,” Saeran cracks a smile.

 **Rika**  
Hi.

 **Ana  
** You really couldn’t do us the favour of dying over the last three years?

 **Ana**  
Here’s an idea: You could throw yourself off of a cliff?

 **Ana**  
Except this time, actually do it.

Saeran chokes on his next breath. Lucifer, looking over your shoulder, frowns skeptically.

“Is that wise?” the demon asks. “If she has his brother captive…”

“She’s afraid of the prime minister and the agency, and she is using this situation to secure her own protection since she’s a former cult leader on the run. She has virtually no power here,” you explain. “She’s only in the messenger in order to gloat and torment us and the RFA.”

Lucifer is a bit stunned by your assessment. “None of that has been confirmed as of yet,” he points out.

“Logan’s very sharp,” Saeran smiles proudly. “And I agree – that is the most likely scenario.”

“Just because I got hit with knockout gas for an hour doesn’t mean my brain stopped working,” you grin.

 **Rika**  
How cruel! :(

 **Rika**  
We haven’t spoken in three years and that is the first thing you have to say?

 **Ana  
** You want me to say more?

 **Ana  
** ‘Cause I’ve got three years’ worth.

 **Ana  
** I could do this literally all day.

 **Rika**  
I see that V hasn’t told you we’re together again.

 **Ana**  
That was obvious.

 **Ana**  
You use your brainwash juice on him too?

“You _could_ be slightly more respectful of the situation,” Lucifer insists.

“Nah.”

 **Rika**  
Everyone has left me…

 **Ana**  
Good.

 **Rika**  
It started around the time you took Saeran with you.

 **Rika**  
But V, he didn’t leave me…

 **Ana**  
That’s not terribly surprising.

 **Ana**  
You’re both insane. You deserve each other.

 **Rika**  
I’m surprised you woke up so fast, Ana.

 **Ana**  
You ought to know by now that your bullshit doesn’t work on me.

 **Rika**  
I will just leave what I wanted to say here then.

“She’s tired of me already,” you grin.

Saeran says nothing, just smiles warmly at his phone as he works.

 **Rika**  
To the RFA…

 **Rika  
** Yes, I am alive.

 **Rika**  
Yes, I was the leader of Mint Eye.

 **Rika**  
To Saeran…

 **Rika**  
It’s too bad the gas didn’t work on you.

 **Ana**  
You pumped him so full of your mind control drug that he built up an immunity.

 **Ana**  
Imagine that, huh?

 **Rika**  
…

 **Rika**  
If we could have taken you with us…

 **Rika**  
You would already be reunited with Saeyoung.

 **Rika**  
And both of you would be safe.

 **Ana**  
Oh, you mean the trap?

 **Ana**  
The one where he and his brother are killed by the prime minister?

 **Ana**  
That trap?

 **Rika**  
It may seem like a trap to you…

 **Ana**  
Because it is one.

 **Rika**  
But I can guarantee their safety.

 **Rika**  
All Saeran has to do is come to the address V gave by tomorrow.

 **Rika**  
Alone.

“Saeran…”

He has that defeated look on his face again. You set your phone down and reach out for him, and he snaps his head up and takes your hand in his.

“It might be the only way,” he says sadly. “What else can I do…?”

“We need more information,” you suggest. “We have the address, right? I see that V sent it in an earlier chatroom. We can figure out their security, how many agents they have and how many eyes they have on the building.”

“Right, but…”

“And I’m coming with you.”

“Logan, _no_ ,” Lucifer denies immediately.

“Logan _yes_ ,” you fire back, turning and scowling at him.

“They are only expecting me,” Saeran gently insists, drawing your attention back to him. “What if they hurt you?”

“Two things about that; one, they’ll know that if they hurt me then they’ll lose your cooperation, and two,” you highlight, holding up your left hand. “I have this fancy magic ring that protects me. If anybody raises a hand against me, well, things are going to get pretty crazy pretty immediately.”


	6. Demon Magic.

“… Your ring is magic?” he blinks.

“Didn’t I tell you that already?” you frown. “Sorry, I must have forgot-”

“Logan,” Saeran sighs, getting an irritated expression on his face. “If that is true, then how can I be sure that it’s not manipulating you?”

Oh, _crap_.

Right, he was previously brainwashed by Rika’s cult. He’s bound to be a bit paranoid about mysterious magic rings from future Demon Kings.

“Saeran,” you try. “It’s not _like_ that-”

He stands from his seat and grabs your hand, sliding the ring off of your hand and throwing it away. Neither Lucifer nor you do anything to stop him. Instead, you just sigh.

“… Do you feel better now?” you ask.

“That depends. Do you?”

“Saeran, the ring isn’t manipulating me in any way.”

“It won’t be able to now, at least.”

You reach behind yourself and withdraw the ring, showing it to him. He startles, glancing behind himself in the direction he threw it in, and then back at you, incredulous. Lucifer chuckles.

“The ring is soulbound,” you explain. “You can’t get rid of it that easily.”

“Then I’ll find another way-”

“ _Saeran_.”

“Logan,” he begins seriously, taking your hand in his again. “I’m sorry, I’m so sorry that we lost touch three years ago. But then, the first thing you tell me when I finally get to see you again, is that you’re getting married to the Devil himself. How am I supposed to believe that you’re safe? What am I supposed to think, that this was your choice??”

“ _Yes_ , because it _was_ ,” you say, exasperated. “There is a lot I haven’t told you because, frankly, it’s a _lot_.”

“I want you to tell me everything, then,” he pleads. “I want to know that you’re safe and happy.”

“I am, I promise. As for _everything_ , it can wait until after we save your brother.”

“But, this man you’re marrying- Do you even love him?”

You hold your head in your free hand. “Saeran… That’s- It’s _complicated_ , okay?”

“You said it was a diplomatic marriage,” he remembers.

“It is,” you nod. “I support his mission of uniting the three worlds, and our marriage is part of that.”

“But you don’t even have feelings for him,” he counters. “How can you tell me that me going to join my brother isn’t a life, when you’re throwing away your happiness and freedom by marrying someone you don’t even love?”

Your face grows hot as you realize he’s _right_ , goddamnit, in a way. Lucifer just hums quietly to himself, delighted by the fact that someone other than himself is challenging your decision to marry Diavolo.

“I’m happy,” you insist again. “And I’m safe. And I’m not losing _any_ of my freedom through my engagement – Diavolo wouldn’t have that. After all, that’s why he let me stay here with you, you know? He knows I need my space to solve my problems _my_ way.”

“Logan-”

“Even if you don’t trust Diavolo or demons in general,” you press on. “You can still trust _me_. I’m secure in my decision to marry Dia and that’s that.”

He lets out a long sigh, dropping his head on the bed, still gripping your hand in his.

“… When is the wedding?” he asks softly.

“About a year from now,” you tell him.

So he still has time to change your mind, Saeran realizes. After all, he’s never stopped loving you and looking forward to the day you would meet again. He props your hand up to rest against the side of his face, and you automatically smile and thread your fingers into his hair, just like back at Mint Eye. Back when he was Ray.

Lucifer looks on with jealous disdain, but decides to hold his tongue for now.

“Anyways, I have an idea,” you reveal. “Lucifer?”

“Hmm?”

“… Under normal circumstances I would _never_ ask you to try this, but,” you assert. “These aren’t normal circumstances, so… If I’m not wearing my ring, is it still possible for you to summon me?”

He’s a bit stunned you would even bring up his pact over you, what with how much you have protested it in the past.

“… You want a way for you to quickly escape,” he realizes.

Lucifer is already liking the sound of this plan.

“That’s right,” you nod. “If things go south, and this _works_ , then I can try to signal you to pull me out. And, if Saeran is willing, maybe you can make a pact with him, too.”

“You mentioned pacts briefly before,” Saeran remembers. “That you had several over his brothers. How does a demon’s pact work?”

“It’s sort of like, binding a demon to your service,” you explain. “Except, in Lucifer’s case it’s the reverse – I can’t summon him, but he _might_ be able to summon _me_.”

“Can you stand?” Lucifer asks.

“I don’t know, but I can wiggle my toes now,” you say, doing so under the blankets where they can see it. “That’s good enough for me.”

“… Are you sure you want to try this?”

Oh, so _now_ he’s asking for your permission? For Saeran’s sake, you decide to swallow the sassy comeback. For now.

“Walk over to the other side of the room,” you say. It was probably Jumin’s doing that you got such a large private room in the first place. “And, let’s give it a shot.”

Lucifer rises from his chair, walking to the other side of the room. Saeran lets go of your hand and you set your ring on the small side table, just for now.

“… **Logan** -”

You’re _ripped_ from the bed to stand in front of Lucifer, your knees collapsing out from underneath you as you yelp at the suddenness of the summoning. The heart monitor starts making a prolonged beeping noise as you’re no longer connected and the IV needle and tubing go flying.

Lucifer’s gloved hands are quick to grab hold of you, keeping you from falling to the floor and injuring yourself as you clutch at the front of his vest.

“… _Whoa_ ,” you breathe, struggling to regain your footing.

“Logan! Are you alright?” Saeran panics, crossing the room to be at your side.

“I’m okay, just- Seven _Hells_ that was a trip,” you gasp. “Is _that_ what demons go through every time they’re summoned?? I could… I’m gunna throw up…”

A trash can appears in your vision, held by Saeran. Your stomach empties itself of its contents pretty immediately.

“Admittedly it is probably more tolerable to demons,” Lucifer muses.

“Well, I’m still gonna think twice about summoning your brothers like that the next time,” you mumble.

“You’re still not well,” Saeran insists, discarding the trash bin. “Come on, let’s get you back to bed.”

“Okay,” you agree, shifting your weight into his waiting arms. “But… What do you think, though? It works.”

“Let me think about it some more,” he says worriedly, looking over your head at the demon with a skeptical expression. “I’m not sure that a pact is what I want for myself right now.”

“That’s completely fair,” you say, limping along with him, back to the bed. “Ugh, my food tasted _way_ better on its way down…”

“I can get you some water?” he offers, helping you to settle in. You decide to just sit on the side of the bed for now.

“Actually, Lucifer,” you call to the demon. “Would you mind buying me a drink? Some kind of cola, like Ph.D. Pepper, with caffeine in it please.”

The demon sighs, taking that as his cue to leave for a moment.

“Yes, Saeran,” you begin, sliding your ring back onto your hand. “I can practically see the question forming in your brain-“

“You made a point of having your ring off before asking him to do that,” he frowns. “Is it supposed to protect you from him, as well?”

You knew he’d figure that out quick.

“… Pacts aren’t normally supposed to work like that,” you explain. “Normally, it gives humans power over demons, to summon them and give orders… Not, y’know, the other way around.”

“… He tried to _enslave_ you.”

“Saeran…”

“You didn’t want that, did you??”

You sigh. “No…”

“Why didn’t you say something?” he insists. “That man has been in this room for a while now, and he’s a threat to you, and you didn’t say _anything_ about it??”

“I told you, there’s just a _lot_ -”

“That’s worse… That’s _worse_ than what the agency did to Saeyoung, what Rika did to _me_ … At least we still had a _choice!_ ”

“Saeran!” you call out, grabbing his hands in yours. “Saeran, _please_. I’m already protected from him. I’m already safe. Diavolo made sure of it by enchanting my ring so that he can’t use it. I only brought it up because it genuinely _could_ be used for a quick escape.”

“He’s hurt you,” he whimpers, bringing your hand to his face. “He’s hurt you, and I wasn’t there for you…”

“Saeran,” you say, holding him. “He’s never actually _used_ it before today.”

“… He hasn’t?”

You shake your head, smiling. “I think he knows it was wrong of him on some level, with how I reacted to it initially,” you explain. “Actually, we don’t see eye to eye most of the time? But Lucifer does really care about me, in his own twisted way. He may’ve made a pact with me improperly, but he would _never_ do anything to hurt me. And my ring makes sure that he can’t use the pact normally – it blocks his ability to summon me or command me.”

“… And you suggested he do the same to me?”

“ _Only_ with your informed _consent_ ,” you stress. “You’ve seen what it can do, you know how it works now, and there _is_ a way to break it. I figure, _if_ you were interested in it, _temporarily_ -”

“Why does he still have a pact with you if it is so easily broken?” he rightly asks.

“… _Pride_ ,” you roll your eyes. “No, but really, if you decided that you wanted that, I would make absolutely _sure_ he would break it as soon as everyone is safe. Or _else_.”

“Or else what?”

“Or else I’ll send him to rot in the dungeon for two hundred years – he can’t use it from inside a cell either, it turns out,” you smirk.

“I’m guessing there’s a story behind that, as well,” he sighs heavily.

“I promised you that I’m safe,” you reassure him again. “And I meant it. No one can harm me with the ring, Lucifer can’t harm me either, and the main reason why he’s even still here is because he’s _also_ looking out for me in his own way. Just like you, he needs to be at my side so that he can see for himself that I’m okay.”

He sighs again, sinking to rest his head against the side of your leg while you pet his hair.

“I should be thinking of a plan to save my brother,” he hums softly. “But… Now I don’t want to move.”

“… Me either.”

Lucifer had waited outside the door for a couple of minutes, listening in on your conversation about his pact.

He appreciates hearing that you understand his feelings at least somewhat, even if you insist that you don’t return them. And you’re right – he is _not_ leaving your side while you are entrenched in this situation. Not even if Diavolo told him to back off or to return to the Devildom.

He doesn’t trust Saeran, though… Not one bit. Who is this mysterious human who managed to capture your heart three years ago? This man who apparently kidnapped you and brought you to a cult led by Rika to use you against the RFA, but you somehow turned the situation around on him and wound up rescuing him and dismantling the cult in the process.

… That’s very _you_ , he thinks, with how his own feelings for you had changed over time. In spite of himself and his suspicions of your motives in gaining pacts with his brothers, he had fallen for you too.

He briskly walks the short distance to the vending machines, finding the soda you mentioned and purchasing a bottle.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Spent most of Christmas Day daydreaming how the rest of this story goes. Long story short, it has an ending now, and hopefully we'll get there before this short story gets too long ;P
> 
> Edit - whoops, added a section at the end a bit impulsively where Dia texts Luci, but Luci currently has Dia's phone, so it's been removed.


	7. Surveillance.

“The doctors said that you are not well enough to leave just yet,” Lucifer insists. “They want to keep you overnight for observation-”

“To _Hells_ with that,” you grumble, shifting to sit on the edge of the bed. Saeran is at your side instantly for you to lean against. “If I can stand, I can walk. I’ll sign myself out if I have to. Besides, without me here taking up space they can focus on waking up the rest of the RFA.”

You climb off the bed and your knees and legs threaten to give out once again. But after a moment, you’re on your feet, and you’re standing, and you’re supporting your own weight.

“… Maybe you should at least take a wheelchair,” Saeran suggests.

“I’m walking out of here under my own power even if it kills me,” you stubbornly fire back.

Lucifer rolls his eyes, a troubled sigh leaving him. “And what about your clothes? You can’t leave in that gown, and you can barely stay upright.”

“I’ll manage-”

“Let me help you get dressed,” Saeran offers.

If looks could kill, Lucifer’s glare would have already turned the human into vapour. “ **I don’t think so,** ” he warns.

“It’s nothing I haven’t seen before,” he smirks.

Your face _boils_ at the reminder of your last night together. “Sae _ran!_ I can… Just… Just go wait in the hall with Lucifer, _please?_ ” you attempt, exasperated. “If I fall over or need help, I’ll call out.”

“You shouldn’t be left alone, even for a moment,” the demon insists.

“Just _GO_ already!” you shout at them, half-pushing Saeran and half-leaning against him as try and march them out of the room. “You both have five seconds to leave before I start _throwing_ things!”

The boys are removed, the door is slammed shut, the blind drawn, and you sigh, stumbling back over to the hospital bag containing your clothes.

* * *

The two of them wait impatiently for you to get changed, standing to either side of the closed door.

“So…” Lucifer begins. “Fiancé?”

“Oh, right,” Saeran chuckles. “Logan didn’t want me to reveal who she’s getting married to, but forgot to hide her engagement ring. Our friends in the RFA assumed that I had proposed to her this morning as soon as we found each other again, and I decided to go along with it. The EMTs made the same assumption when we came to the hospital together, and I didn’t want to be separated from her, so I saw no need to correct them.”

“So you’ve taken advantage of the situation,” he observes icily.

“If Logan was uncomfortable with it she would have told me so,” Saeran insists. “Besides, I’m not sure how the RFA would react to knowing who her actual fiancé is. Most of them are religious,” he adds, amused.

“… Religious?”

“Jaehee and my brother are both Catholic. Zen is an atheist, I believe. I’m not sure what Yoosung or Jumin believe in, but I think Yoosung used to go to church with Rika.”

Catholics. Of _course_.

“In any case,” Saeran muses, smiling softly to himself. “Had she not already been spoken for, I likely _would_ have proposed to her on the spot.”

The door swings open next to them, revealing you, fully dressed and leaning heavily against the doorframe.

“… Oh, _good_ ,” you sigh, relieved. “You didn’t kill each other while I wasn’t looking. Are we ready to go?”

* * *

You were on the verge of fist-fighting the ER doc to let you sign yourself out, but fortunately it didn’t come to that. He was insistent that you ought to stay another day for observation at least, as all of the other RFA members are still out cold. You worry about them, but they’re already being looked after and have access to the best medical care that Jumin’s money can buy, so right now the priority is Saeyoung.

“I’ve booked us into a hotel that’s across from the apartment,” Saeran reveals, driving the rental car he arranged. Lucifer insisted on riding shotgun for some reason, while you’ve got the whole back seat to stretch out in. “I don’t know what we’re getting into, but if the deadline is tomorrow at noon then we at least have tonight to do some surveillance.”

“Have you found any publicly facing security servers for the apartment building?” you ask. “The cameras could tell us a lot about these agency guys and their movements.”

He smirks at that, then frowns. “If there are any, I haven’t found them yet.”

“If we knew what company does their security, that would drastically narrow the search. Think I could just walk up to the front door and check for any company decals in the window?” you offer.

“No,” he refuses out of hand. “I don’t like the idea of you going anywhere near that place.”

“Well, _I_ really don’t like the idea of you walking in there alone _either_ ,” you point out.

“Would it be beneficial if I were to follow you to the hallway?” Lucifer offers, looking over at Saeran.

You and Saeran are both surprised to hear him speak up. Whenever it’s come to tackling the scenario you’re mired in – Saeyoung being held hostage by the secret agency, and all your plans to try and get him out of there – the demon has largely kept his thoughts to himself. You know that he doesn’t really get all the hacking and computer talk, and that he initially only popped up to try and force you to come home, but now he’s actually trying to find a way to get involved? To _help?_

“… No offense intended,” Saeran hums. “But, I _was_ instructed to come alone.”

“Also, you’re _kind_ of an intimidating guy, Lucifer,” you point out. “They might assume you’re some kind of body guard or cop. They could react aggressively to your presence, and Saeran or Saeyoung could get caught in the crossfire. Besides,” you add. “It’d really be better if we had someone else in the room too, in order to see what’s actually going on in there. That’s why I’d _love_ to get into some camera systems. Get eyes on the hallway, at least.”

“No one should be coming with me,” Saeran insists again.

“Well, we’re running out of other options,” you sigh.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know there's a chat at some point in Mystic Messenger where they talk about religion, but what Saeran knows here is basically all I remember from it, and I can't be bothered to go looking it up, lol.
> 
> Also, in the bit of dialogue in the after ending where the MC asks if he can just hack the cameras, I feel like Saeran's a bit dismissive of the suggestion. Logan canonically has a background in IT (because she's based off of me ofc), so she at least has an understanding of how security systems work. I mean, that was a big part of my last IT manager job was getting a security setup installed at my building - it's just computer science, not rocket science :P


	8. Only Two Beds.

“Saeran, you’re so smart,” you grin, peeking through the curtains across at the apartment building. “You got us a room that has eyes on the apartment, didn’t you?”

His arms come up around your shoulders to hold you against him, resting his cheek against the side of your head. “It’s too bad they have the blinds closed,” he laments. “They already thought of that.”

“Still, it was worth a shot,” you shrug.

“Mhm.”

Lucifer clears his throat, holding up the room service menu. You turn as Saeran’s arms drop from your shoulders.

“Oh right,” you remember. It’s been hours since lunch and everyone’s feeling peckish. “Is there anything on there you like? Or we can just get pizza?”

“I’m not overly fond of human food,” he sighs. “But, if you could order something spicy for me, I might be able to tolerate it.”

“Nothing for me, thanks,” Saeran says, passing you and opening his laptop. “I need to get back to work. I want to create a secure chatroom that only you and I can use, something the agency can’t get into-”

“ _Saeran_.”

He blinks, looking up at you as you huff at him. “Yes?”

“You are eating something for dinner even if I have to force feed it to you,” you assert. “Don’t think I’ve forgotten about how bad you are at taking care of yourself.”

He lets out a small resigned sigh at that, but he’s smiling. “… Okay, I guess I could eat. Something mild, though.”

With those orders in mind, you start tapping in an online order for Chinese food on your phone.

Your arm is tapped a moment later, and you look up to see Saeran offering you a silvery credit card.

“Put it on this,” he says, not looking up from his computer.

You take it, noting that it’s a company card for C&R International. “You’ve been putting everything on this, right?” you realize. “The car, the hotel, and now food… Is it really okay to keep using it?”

“He gave it to me to use in case of emergencies,” he replies absently. “Jumin actually bankrolled the last three years when I was searching for Saeyoung. … He doesn’t show it very well, but he really cares about people.”

“He really does, doesn’t he,” you smile. “Yeah, I guess Chinese food counts as an emergency enough. Thanks.”

* * *

You’re a bit disappointed.

You had gotten Lucifer the _spiciest_ thing they offered on the menu, and he polished off the whole thing without _any_ reaction and even called it _bland_. It was _very_ unsatisfying. He would up texting on his D.D.D. to someone, you didn’t bother to ask who. Probably just checking in with his brothers to make sure they haven’t set the House of Lamentation ablaze in his absence.

Meanwhile Saeran just munched on a spring roll and you had to pester him into eating a bit more than that. Gods, what are you going to _do_ with these boys?

When nine o’clock rolled around, the two of them snapped back to reality just long enough to realize that there was a problem.

There are three of you, and only two beds in the room.

“Logan, you’ll stay with me tonight, won’t you?” Saeran softly pleads.

“ **Absolutely _not_ ,**” Lucifer shuts him down. “I don’t trust you not to be inappropriate with her. Besides, Logan is _my_ responsibility.”

“I think it’s up to _Logan_ whether she trusts me,” he fires back, then looks to you. “You trust me, right?”

This is a _nightmare_.

“If you guys are going to be all jealous at the idea of me sleeping next to one of you, then why don’t _you two_ share a bed?” you groan.

Lucifer frowns, folding his arms. “I may shift into demon form if my sleep is deep enough. There wouldn’t be room for him.”

You throw your hands up in the air dramatically. “Then how do you expect _me_ to sleep next to you if _he_ can’t?!”

“I think that settles it then,” Saeran grins. “Logan, come here.”

“Like **Hells** it does,” Lucifer bites back, stepping between you.

You glance around the room for a solution while the boys continue to argue.

“I’ve had enough of you trying to force yourself onto Logan,” Lucifer snarls at the human. “You need to keep your distance from her, starting now.”

“ _Force_ myself?” Saeran scoffs. “That’s _hilarious_ coming from _you_.”

There’s a sofa against the wall by the balcony of the oversized hotel room. You realize that the coffee table in front of it is the _only_ thing in the way, and that it can be easily moved.

“ **Excuse me?** ” the demon challenges.

“Logan told me about the nature of your ‘pact’ over her,” he reveals. “About how you tried to _enslave_ her-”

Lucifer is seething. “I did **no such thing-** ”

Lifting up one of the seat cushions, you grin victoriously.

“What other possible reason could you have had, hmm?” Saeran challenges, fists clenched at his sides. “You can’t stomach the idea that she doesn’t like you, so you had to _control_ _her?_ ”

Your limbs still feel a bit like spaghetti from the gas, but you manage to get enough leverage to pull at the metal framing. It unfolds with a loud metal creak.

“Logan had already made pacts with each of my six brothers,” Lucifer defends. “I wasn’t going to allow myself to _be_ controlled _by_ her-”

“Oh, so enslaving her was _self-defense?_ ” Saeran spits. “You’re a piece of work.”

“ **No-!** I did it because _I_ _lo-_ ”

“Excuse me.”

The pair of them stop arguing long enough to look over at you.

“The couch has a hide-a-bed,” you inform them, gesturing to the unfolded bed right next to you. It already has sheets on it, you just need a blanket and pillow to complete it. “Problem solved.”

Saeran makes a face that’s somewhere between a frown and a pout. “… You should be sleeping on something more comfortable than that,” he says of the thin mattress and metal framing. “Here, take my bed.”

“No, take mine!” Lucifer cuts in.

You throw both your hands up in the air, exasperated. “ _UGH_ , you are both _impossible!_ ”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I basically starting writing this story _just_ to make this scene happen, as well as the one in chapter 1, and one or two still to come :P


	9. A Truce.

Before anyone could go to bed, Lucifer insisted Saeran drive him back to the portal so that he could pick up some night clothes for the both of you. You insisted that you would be fine sleeping in your clothes, but then he reminded you that you would be wearing them all of tomorrow as well, and your argument fell apart. Besides, you knew that he likely just wanted some fresh clothes for himself – his day clothes are stifling as it is, and the idea of wearing them two days in a row must be absolutely abhorrent to the Avatar of Pride.

The two of them rode in silence through the darkened city, Lucifer’s arms folded irritably across his chest as usual. Saeran’s focused on his driving, but with very little traffic to worry about, he’s the first to break the stifling silence between them.

“So,” he sighs. “What has Logan been up to these last three years?”

Lucifer blinks, faintly surprised that the human would initiate conversation with him. “Shouldn’t you be asking Logan that?” he counters.

“I’m asking you,” he insists.

The demon sighs at that. “Well,” he begins. “She was one of the two human exchange students who were chosen for Diavolo’s exchange program at RAD last year. Despite having no magical ability of her own, unlike the other student, she managed to learn our language in a week and was fluent in about two, and then stayed at the top of all of her classes to the end of her year.”

“She picked up on your language that quickly?” Saeran hums, awed. “She’s told me that the only other language she’s ever tried to learn was French, but that she struggled with it.”

“It was surprising for us, as well,” Lucifer explains. “I anticipated that her studies would suffer as a result of the language barrier, but fluency was almost as easy for her as it is for any new demon.”

“It’s probably because she saw it as a challenge to overcome, and was determined not to fail,” Saeran smiles proudly.

“Perhaps,” Lucifer chuckles.

“So, how did her engagement happen? The diplomatic marriage to Diavolo?”

Lucifer’s mood sours instantly.

“Uh, sorry I asked,” Saeran withdraws.

“It was him that insisted that she return home after the conclusion of her exchange program,” he answers anyway. “But then, there must have been some decision made without my input to recall her for that purpose.”

“You feel betrayed by Diavolo for proposing to her without telling you?”

Lucifer scowls. “Yes, had I known, I would have done everything in my power to prevent it.”

“Because you love her?”

The demon goes silent, looking out the window as he grinds his teeth.

“… I’m still not a fan of your pact over Logan, what it _implies_ ,” Saeran insists grumpily. “But… I suppose I can understand it as a cultural misunderstanding, maybe a character flaw?”

Lucifer turns back to him. “What are you insinuating, exactly?” he asks, guarded.

“I’m trying to form a truce,” the human sighs gently. “Over the last three years, I have been… Trying to come to terms with my past,” he explains. “And trying to figure out how to feel about it. And… I’ve decided, that I don’t want to feel angry with my mother, my father, or even with Rika and V. I don’t _want_ to feel hateful. I just want to find a way to accept it, come to terms with it, and find a way to move forward away from it, towards something better.”

“That’s very admirable,” Lucifer is forced to admit.

“What you did to Logan makes me angry, but… If _she_ is willing to accept it, and move past it, then I should be able to do the same,” he asserts. “Besides, the way you talk about her, you must think very highly of her, and you seem to have only good intentions towards her and her safety, so far.”

“Diavolo asked me to watch over her.”

“You don’t have to pretend like you’re only here just because he asked,” Saeran smirks. “You could have left at any time.”

“That wouldn’t have been responsible.”

“Right. Of course it wouldn’t have.”

He’s not fond of the human’s patronizing tone, but he decides to let it pass. For now.

“… What was Logan like, when you knew her three years ago?” he finds himself asking.

“About the same – stubborn, headstrong, combative…” Saeran chuckles. “I mean,” he withdraws. “I was being controlled by the elixir, Rika’s mind control drug, for most of it, so my memory is a bit spotty of that time. But, I remember Logan, and her insistence on looking after me, protecting me, even as I was…”

Even when Rika forced the darkness inside to come out of him, and left him to hurt you. And he’d hurt you. Tormented you, toyed with you, did everything in his power to make you fear and even _hate_ him.

And you refused.

“… She saved me,” he nods. “I didn’t even know that I was stuck in a cage for most of my life, because it had been built up around me. But she saw through it, and she saw _me_. And she stopped at _nothing_ to save me. She’s… An angel,” he hums wistfully.

Lucifer stops himself from replying. This human doesn’t need to know about your connection to his deceased little sister.

“She is that,” he muses.

“We’re here,” Saeran says, parking the car on the street next to the alleyway where the portal entrance is. “Huh, you would think for a gateway to Hell that… I don’t know, that there would be something visible there.”

“The portal conceals itself when it’s not in use,” Lucifer answers, unbuckling his seatbelt.

“All right, I’ll be waiting here for you to get back,” Saeran nods. “You know, for a demon who’s been alive for thousands of years, I kind of figured you would’ve learned how to drive by now.”

“Oh, I can drive,” he grins, stepping out of the car.

Saeran’s surprised. “Then why ask me to-?”

“I wanted to ensure that you weren’t left alone with Logan,” the demon smirks, slamming the door closed behind him.

He watches Lucifer walk away towards the portal, then laughs.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This conversation sort of came out of nowhere but it happened so organically and I really like it? So have an entire chapter that's just this.


	10. Business or Pleasure.

“We’re _hungryyy~!_ ” Asmo whines as soon as he sets foot in the House of Lamentation.

“Yo, you know it was your turn to cook, yeah!?” Mammon scolds him.

“I’m **starving** ,” Beel whimpers, his stomach protesting loudly.

He sighs at his collected brothers, taking his shoes off and then digging into his jacket for his wallet. “Really now, you couldn’t fend for yourselves for one night?” he chastises them.

“What’s going on in the human world, anyways?” Belphegor asks tiredly.

“Yeah, why are you back so late?” Levi sighs. “Not that I care, but…”

He had messaged them earlier to let them know that he would be in the human world on business for an unknown amount of time.

“I am only stopping in for a change of clothes,” he explains curtly. “Then I will be returning there without delay.”

“That doesn’t answer the question,” Satan sighs.

“If you are all so famished, then here,” he says, taking a card out of his wallet.

“Aw yeah! Let’s get some pizza!” Mammon cheers, going to take the offered credit card.

“ **No,** ” Lucifer barks, raising his hand and the card with it up and away from his greedy younger brother. “Levi, you take it,” he says, turning and offering it to him instead. “And if there are **any** purchases made on it other than food while it is in your possession,” he warns. “You **will** be hanging from the chandelier for the next **six months** , at _least_.”

Mammon curses while Leviathan pales.

“He’s still avoiding the question,” Belphie moans to Satan, shaking his head.

“It must be serious,” he agrees. “What do you think he’s doing in the human world?”

“Beats me,” Belphie shrugs. “Whatever it is, it must have something to do with Diavolo. So, I don’t overly care.”

“Asmodeus,” Lucifer addresses. “I need your help with something. Let’s go to your room.”

“Oh! Sure thing, big bro~!” he hums delightedly.

The Avatar of Lust giddily scampers off behind their eldest brother, while the rest of them look on.

“Order food. **_Now_ ,**” Beel barks, on the verge of shifting into demon form.

“Yikes! Okay, okay! I’m opening the Devildash app right now!” Levi panics, fumbling his D.D.D.

* * *

“You need a change of clothes for _Logan?_ ” Asmo asks, surprised by the request.

“Yes, and if you could be fairly quick about it…”

“No problem! Although, I can’t help but wonder what it is you two are doing in the human world together~!” the Avatar of Lust sings to himself, rifling through his massive closet. “What’s the mood? Is it a trip for work, or is it for _pleasure~?_ ”

Lucifer has to avert his eyes from one of the garments Asmo produces from his closet.

“Ahahaha~! I _knew_ you’d like that one!” his younger brother teases him. “So that’s a definite _yes_ , then~”

“ **Put that back,** ” he scowls. “It’s a fairly conservative affair.”

“But it _is_ an affair,” Asmo winks as he continues to needle him. “Lucifer, I _never_ would’ve thought you the type! What would Lord Diavolo think, _hmm~?_ ”

Maybe he should have just gone to the castle instead. Barbatos would have been quicker and far more professional about picking clothes for you.

“How about this one?” Asmo suggests.

Lucifer hesitates to look up, but when he does and sees the latest suggestion, he relents.

“… That will do nicely,” he nods. “Okay, and how about clothes for her to wear tomorrow?”

“Not so fast! What if Logan’s having a boy day instead?” Asmo insists. “You’re going to need multiples of each.”

He had hoped that this wouldn’t take up too much of his time, but his brother does have a point.

“… Fine,” he agrees. “But this better not take all evening. I have to get back to the human world as soon as possible.”

“Well someone’s no fun tonight!” Asmo huffs playfully, returning to his closet. “Luckily, I have a couple of options you both should enjoy, and then let’s talk underwear!”

“Underwear?” Lucifer balks.

“ _Yes_ , underwear!” Asmo counters. “Obviously, Logan’s going to need a change of underwear on your ‘affair’! _Honestly!_ ”

He puts his face in his hands, groaning irritably and hoping against hope that this torment will end soon.

* * *

After returning to his room to pick up a few things, he stops by Satan’s room on his way out.

“… Did you need something?” Satan asks boredly, barely looking at him over the top of whatever book he’s currently engrossed in.

Lucifer sizes him up for a moment, then nods. Saeran is about the same build as Satan, he figures, though slightly taller than his brother.

“I need to borrow some of your clothes,” he announces.

“Didn’t you already raid Asmo’s closet?” Satan points out.

“These would be for someone else.”

“Who?”

“A friend of Logan’s. You have the same build as him,” he reveals.

He snaps his book closed, setting it aside and sitting up on his bed. “So this _is_ about Logan,” he hums thoughtfully. “What are you doing in the human world with Logan and, _whomever_ this mystery human is?”

“It’s none of your concern,” Lucifer frowns.

“If it concerns Logan, then it concerns all of us,” he insists.

He groans, then marches over to his brother’s closet to extract a change of clothes himself.

“ _Oi_ , I didn’t say you could go in there-!” Satan shouts, standing from the bed.

Ignoring him, the first born slides the closet door open.

He’s surprised to be greeted with a cacophony of tiny mews. And yet, somehow _not_ surprised in the slightest.

Turning to his brother, he folds his arms and waits for his explanation.

“… I found them out in the rain,” Satan blushes, frowning. “There was no mother in sight, so I took them in. Just temporarily, only until they are old enough to be taken to a shelter,” he reasons.

“Satan…”

He reaches past him into the closet, taking a couple of hangers with clothes on them and shoving them towards his older brother. “Here, for Logan’s friend,” he insists, hoping to redirect his ire away from the helpless little kittens.

“… You had _better_ bring them to a shelter. _Tomorrow_ , not ‘when they’re old enough’,” Lucifer demands, accepting the clothes. “There is no reason why _you_ have to be the one to rehabilitate them.”

“… Tch, _fine_ ,” Satan grits his teeth.

* * *

“You’re doing _WHAT_ with Logan?!”

On his way out Mammon grabs him by the collar, red-faced and furious. Not far behind him is Leviathan and Belphegor.

“Unhand me, **now,** ” Lucifer sternly orders.

“Asmo said you were having an _affair_??” Belphegor charges furiously.

“How DARE you, Lucifer!” Levi seethes, tears at the corners of his eyes.

The first born rolls his eyes. “Asmodeus has colourfully misinterpreted what is going on in his usual way, _obviously_ ,” he deflects.

“Then why’d ya need a change of clothes for her?! _HUH!?_ ” Mammon demands.

“ **I said _unhand me_** ,” Lucifer growls, pushing him away with all his strength. Mammon stumbles back away from him, but stays on his feet.

“Tell us what’s going on!” Belphie insists.

“You want to know what is happening? **Fine** ,” Lucifer scoffs. “One of Logan’s human friends is in trouble, and we are helping his brother get him out of it. That is all there is to it.”

“Wait, what?” Levi asks, confused. “What sort of trouble?”

“He’s mixed up with some dangerous people. We are still trying to find a way to extricate him from the situation safely.”

“… Is _Logan_ in any danger?” Belphie asks.

“I am remaining with them to ensure that she is not,” Lucifer reassures him.

“If it’s that dangerous, then maybe we oughta be there too!” Mammon argues.

“ **Absolutely _not_ ,**” Lucifer barks. “The situation is already _very_ precarious as it is, and I don’t need the six of you showing up and over-complicating matters.”

“But-!”

“You are **not** to travel to the human world until further notice, or until summoned by a pact,” he asserts. “ **Is that understood?** ”

Mammon and Belphegor glare at him with teeth grit, ready to defy the eldest’s direct order. But Levi lets out a small dejected sigh.

“I guess if… If Logan wanted us there, she would have summoned us already,” Leviathan realizes.

That seems to deflate the other two, who relax and share a sigh of their own.

“I will try and keep you updated as the situation evolves,” Lucifer suggests. “And rest assured – **no harm will come to Logan under my watch**.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another chapter that just sort of happened. I needed some demon bros shenanigans, I guess :P


	11. The Darkness Within.

“Look, Dia- Can we not do this right now? It’s late.”

The two return to the hotel room to find you stretched out on one of the beds wearing a robe with your hair wet, your hand pressed to your forehead and your D.D.D. pressed to one ear, looking stressed. You look up at them and huff.

“They just got back, so can we just- Yes, I’ll call you in the morning. Promise,” you say, trying to end the call.

You say your goodbyes and hang up, sitting up on the bed and sighing.

“What’s wrong?” Saeran asks immediately, setting the keys down on a small table by the door. Lucifer passes from behind him, carrying multiple department store tote bags for some reason. Did he go shopping while he was there?

“Diavolo called. What did you say to him, Lucifer?” you say, scowling at the demon in the room.

“I stopped by the castle to return his D.D.D. to him,” he responds, setting one of the bags down on the bed beside you. “He did ask a couple of questions about the situation, but my visit was very brief.”

“Logan?” Saeran tries, coming over to sit on the bed at your other side, hands clasped over his lap. “Are you alright?”

“What happened?” Lucifer inquires, standing off to one side.

“… Dia is worried that, because I met you first and because our relationship got interrupted by you searching for your brother and him summoning me to the Devildom for the exchange program, that he might be interfering with my ‘mortal destiny’, or whatever,” you explain. “So, he was just asking me if I wanted to call off our engagement.”

Both of them are so stunned they don’t know what to say.

“… And what did you say to him?” Saeran asks, trying to sound compassionate but you know the wheels must be turning in his mind. If you broke things off with Diavolo, then you would have a chance to get back together with him.

You frown indignantly, folding your arms. “I said I don’t give up that easily.”

Lucifer makes a displeased noise at that, while Saeran bursts into laughter.

“No, you certainly don’t,” he admits, wiping a tear from his eye.

“I plan to take a shower and get ready for bed,” Lucifer announces, gesturing to your bag. “If you would like to get changed for bed first, however…”

“Oh, yeah that’s probably something I should do,” you say, pulling the robe tighter and hopping off the bed, grabbing the bag on the way by.

“Saeran, I also borrowed some clothes from one of my brothers for you,” the demon adds, offering him a bag.

“Oh, I didn’t need anything actually,” he shrugs.

“Then what were you planning to wear to bed?” Lucifer charges.

“I was just going to wear my boxers to bed.”

With you in the room? He fumes at that. “And what about tomorrow?”

“I was going to hang my clothes to steam in the shower when I take mine in the morning,” he explains. “That’s what I usually do when I’m on a trip. I get several days out of them that way.”

Lucifer is _appalled_. You were intimate with this man? He turns to scowl at you but you’ve already closed and locked the bathroom door behind you. Instead, he shoves the bag at the human irregardless of his plan to be unhygienic.

“… Your brother sure likes the colour green, huh?” Saeran observes, cautiously poking at the clothes in the bag that was dropped on him. “Why are there tiny cats all over everything-”

“Wha- UGH! _ASMODEUS!!!_ ”

And then both of them startle when they hear you yell.

“I am going to _KILL_ that demon, seriously what was he _thinking!?_ ”

Lucifer puts a gloved hand over his face as he sighs.

* * *

“… Hey. You awake?”

Saeran rolls over onto his side to face you. “Mhm. Can’t sleep?” he asks.

You shake your head, climbing onto the bed and stretching out beside him as he shuffles over to make room. “You either, huh?”

“I think my body has been permanently conditioned to function on only a couple hours of sleep at a time,” he admits. “And, I’m worried about tomorrow, of course.”

He brings his arms up to hold you, but you stop him with a finger in his face.

“Okay, ground rules; Hands stay _above_ the belt,” you assert. “… I know what we were like before, but…”

He raises his hands in surrender. “I’ll behave, I promise,” he smiles. “Really, I’m just grateful for the chance to hold you in my arms again.”

You fluster a bit at that. That’s part of the reason why you climbed onto his bed with him, anyways. You wanted to be close to him again, too.

You turn away from him and fluff up a pillow as he wraps you up in his arms, holding you against his warm body and sighing contentedly as he brings a hand fast around your waist and one up to gently play with your hair. It’s incredibly soothing and makes almost all of your anxiety just melt away.

Your indulgent moment is broken though when he sighs softly into your hair.

“Logan…”

“Mn.”

“About earlier,” he starts. “Why… Why _not_ break your engagement with him?”

“Saeran…”

“I’m just curious,” he insists. “I’m not trying to say anything.”

You sit up slightly so you can lie on your other side and face him.

“It’s complicated,” you start, meeting his eyes as best as you can in the dim light. “Like… It’s not like I’m just getting married to some _random guy_ , you know? He’s the future King of the _Devildom_ , so this engagement is _way bigger_ than just me and him – it’s going to define the future of the Nine Hells, of all three _worlds_.”

He takes one of your hands gently in his, massaging his thumb against your palm thoughtfully. “And… It _has_ to be you he marries?”

“So he’s told me,” you shrug. “Actually, the exact words he used were ‘it couldn’t _not be_ you’.”

He sighs wistfully at that, bringing your fingers to his mouth to kiss your knuckles. “… I wish I’d never left you.”

“Saeran, don’t say that. You _had_ to. Saeyoung-”

“I would have taken you with me if it wasn’t so dangerous,” he says, his words trembling as he fights back a sob. “But, no. I couldn’t. I was already risking myself. If they ever caught up to me or Saeyoung, I couldn’t risk the agency hurting you, too.”

You _have_ been sort of wondering about his three-year search for his brother. What that must have been like… You can only imagine how lonely it must’ve felt, and _damn_ your old phone for breaking just after he’d left.

“It’s too cruel,” he mutters dejectedly as you wipe at his tears. “To hold you in my arms again after all this time, only to have to let you go…”

“Saeran…”

He wraps his arms around you and pulls you against him, holding you tightly, _desperately_. You stroke his hair and do your best to soothe him as he starts to calm back down.

Then all at once he seems… Almost _too_ calm.

“You know…” he hums by your ear. “Having you in my arms like this is giving me ideas… _Wicked_ ones,” he chuckles deeply.

… Oh no. If him crying and holding you desperately was _Ray_ , then…

He flips you onto your back and climbs over you, knees pressed into the bed on either side of your hips as he holds your wrists over your head.

“You know, I wouldn’t do this if I were you,” you tell him.

“And who’s going to stop me, hmm?” he challenges.

Some of his haughtiness when you first knew this side of him has definitely faded, but the confidence, that _darkness_ … Some remnant of it still lingers behind those mint green eyes.

“Lucifer is literally five feet away,” you roll your eyes, unfazed. “Y’know, the Avatar of Pride?”

“He’s asleep,” he counters.

“He’s a _very_ light sleeper, and an insomniac at that,” you reveal, turning your head towards the demon. “Right, Lucifer?”

At your mention of him, he calmly sits up in the bed, the silhouette of horns and four large feathered wings obvious with the moonlit curtains for the large bay window looking out to the balcony right behind him.

“ **Unhand her.** **_NOW_** ,” the demon commands.

Saeran hesitates for the briefest moment, as if caught between utter shock at the inhuman appearance of your unwitting third wheel and weighing his options. Finally, he rolls off of you, falling onto his back and stretching out as you sit up.

“… How long has he been awake?” Saeran sighs.

“Pretty much the entire time,” you chuckle. “I know what he sounds like when he snores, so…”

Lucifer stands from his bed and clicks on a light, his demon features having conveniently disappeared before Saeran can actually see them properly.

“ _Well_ ,” the demon says irritably, folding his arms with a sigh. “Now, Logan, if you could return to _your_ _own bed_ …”

Saeran’s confidence has faded a bit and he rolls onto his side, patting the bed with a pleading look. “No! You can stay. I won’t try anything like that again, I _swear_ it.”

“I think you’ve done **enough** for one night?” Lucifer scoffs. “Better idea; Logan, you will join me on my bed instead, so that I can prevent him from being indecent with you like that again.”

You sneer at the demon. As _if_ he wouldn’t try the exact same trick the first chance he got, you think. Only difference is, you don’t trust him to actually back off like Saeran did.

“I’m actually going to go to the bathroom?” you announce, standing from the bed and grabbing your phone from where it was charging on the nightstand. You point accusingly at Lucifer on your way by. “You are _not_ to kill, maim, or torture him. Got it?”

He just sighs at that. You figure that might be the best you’ll get out of him as you close and lock the door behind you.

“… Sorry I got carried away,” Saeran admits, stretched out on his bed. “There are so many things I wanted to tell Logan when I came back, so many things I wanted to do with her… And now, knowing that she’s pledged herself to another man… It’s _suffocating_ me from the inside out.”

The human rolls onto his side, grabbing a pillow and clutching it to his chest. “All I want to do is shower her with my affection, tell her how much I love her thousands of times over, tell her all about the life I _still_ want to build with her, and I just… Have this _ache_ inside of me, right next to my heart, as if a piece of it has been torn out and I can’t do _anything_ to mend the wound.”

Lucifer grasps a hand over his chest thoughtfully. He wonders if the ache he feels is similar. You listen through the bathroom door with a sigh.

“I love her. I love her so much I can’t stand it,” he heaves a sigh, burying his face into the pillow. “If I could take the last three years back I would. I would in a heartbeat.”

Your phone makes a familiar sound, so you open it up to check the notification. You _gasp_.

Lucifer makes a noise deep in his throat to clear it. “… How are you so-”

You burst from the bathroom in a panic. “Sorry to interrupt the moment, but Seven’s in the chat!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cuddles with Baeran because I am affection starved as fuck, I give no fucks. Lucifer, who dresses like a priest and is pent up as fuck, sure has weird ideas about what's indecent. Dia really popped up in my brain and said 'now wait a minute I want to cause problems too though'.
> 
> Also, this isn't at all how this chapter was originally going to go. Guys... I don't think I'm the one writing this fic anymore. O.O;


	12. Whatever it Takes.

**707**  
.

 **707**  
?

 **707**  
Aaaaaaaaaa

 **Ana**  
Saeyoung?!

 **707**  
whoa

 **707**  
didn’t think I’d see someone here…

 **Ana**  
Saeyoung, is that you?!

 **707**  
No…

**Saeran has entered the chatroom.**

**Ana  
** Then who are you??

 **707**  
Oh

 **707**  
so youre the famed brother…

 **Saeran**  
Saeyoung?

 **Ana**  
He said it’s not him :(

 **Ana**  
Who are you? How did you get access to the messenger??

 **Saeran**  
Are you from the agency?

 **707**  
Well,

 **707**  
I guess now it doesn’t matter

 **707**  
whether i tell you…

 **707**  
Yep. I’m from the agency.

You reach over and give Saeran’s arm a gentle squeeze as he lets out a disappointed sigh.

“I was really hoping it was him,” he mumbles.

“I know. I’m sorry. Let’s just see what this mystery agent can tell us, though. Maybe it can help?” you offer.

 **Ana**  
How come you are using Saeyoung’s username?

 **707**  
Oh.

 **707**  
Boss told me to search 707’s phone

 **707**  
I decided to check the rfa app

 **707**  
that he always fidgeted with,

 **707**  
and here i am.

 **707**  
But i dont think this is the rfa’s channel.

“You know, I was wondering about that,” you point out. “There was a lock icon when I entered and the background is different.”

“This is the secure channel I’ve been working on,” Saeran explains. “I wanted a way for us to talk without the agency seeing our messages, since the messenger was compromised just yesterday.”

“You work fast,” you grin. “As always, I guess.”

 **Saeran**  
I kept this channel open for saeyoung

 **Saeran**  
just in case…

 **Ana**  
Do you know Saeyoung?

 **707**  
Dont even get me started…

 **707**  
Geez, that jerk…

 **707**  
He almost got me killed dozens of times becuz he kept procrastinating…

 **Saeran**  
Who are you?

 **707**  
The codename’s vanderwood.

 **Saeran**  
What’s your real name?

 **707**  
It was lost ages ago.

 **Ana**  
How melodramatic.

 **Saeran**  
Right?

 **707**  
hey.

 **Ana**  
We should pick a better name for you

 **Ana**  
How does Mr. Beans sound?

 **707**  
Hey.

 **Saeran**  
Sounds good to me :)

 **Saeran**  
It’s better than Vanderwood.

 **Ana**  
Anything’s better than Vanderwood.

 **707**  
HEY.

 **707**  
My name’s not up for debate

 **707**  
Even if it’s a code name

 **707**  
geez, this guy

 **707**  
why does he have such weird friends…

 **Saeran**  
For now

 **Saeran**  
we’ll call you vanderwood

 **707**  
What do you mean, for now?

 **707**  
Just call me by my codename whenever you talk to me.

 **707**  
Wait, no!

 **707**  
Why would i expect you to keep talking to me?

“This guy has really loose lips for a secret agent,” you realize.

“I’d agree with you, but there’s no way to be sure he is who he says he is,” Saeran muses. “Still though, the only way he’d be able to login is through Saeyoung’s phone, so at the very least, we know he’s close to my brother.”

 **Ana**  
Is Saeyoung safe?

 **707**  
Well…

 **707**  
Neither of us

 **707**  
will ever get to enjoy true peace

 **707**  
before death.

 **Saeran**  
Death…?

 **Ana**  
That BETTER have been you being melodramatic again.

 **707**  
Oops.

 **707**  
…..

 **707**  
Sorry.

 **Ana**  
Are you telling us that Saeyoung is already dead??

 **Ana**  
Answer me. Now.

 **707**  
whoa

 **707**  
ur one scary lady

 **707**  
anyone ever tell you that…?

 **Saeran**  
I need to know if my brother is alive.

 **707**  
I guess youd want to know that

 **707**  
and I’m not sure how much i shud tell you…

 **707**  
Yes hes alive

 **707**  
But…

 **707**  
sorry.

 **Ana**  
Trust me, you’re not sorry yet.

 **707**  
Geez, lady

 **707**  
Anyways, sorry.

 **Saeran**  
Why would you be sorry?

 **707**  
Becuz i have to be…

 **707**  
I had no choice. It was an assignment for me.

 **707**  
I had no idea

 **707**  
your father and my boss would join forces.

 **Ana**  
Are you going to tell the agency about this chatroom?

“You don’t think he will?” Saeran asks, surprised.

“This whole conversation is just kind of _weird_ , isn’t it?” you point out. “I mean, he apologized for being involved in Saeyoung’s capture, gave us his code name, and is just really… I don’t know? It doesn’t sound like he super loves the agency either, more like… He’s afraid of them.”

“You really think you can convince this man to defect from his organization?” Lucifer scolds, looking over your shoulder at the scrolling chat.

“Don’t know about that, but we definitely caught him flat-footed,” you shrug. “Maybe that’s something we can use to our advantage, somehow.”

 **707**  
Well

 **707**  
i need to hand over 707’s phone to my boss.

 **707**  
But

 **707**  
before i do that

 **707**  
i shud delete every stupid thing i said.

 **Saeran**  
Vanderwood… Please…

 **Saeran**  
Tell me about my brother…

 **Saeran**  
Anything is fine.

 **707**  
Geez.

 **707**  
But I have to go.

 **Saeran**  
Please.

 **Ana**  
How do you know Saeyoung? It sounds like you worked together?

 **707**  
When he was at home

 **707**  
he was lazy.

 **707**  
But when he was out on a mission, he was mysterious…

 **707**  
He’d be all easygoing and carefree, but he was cold inside.

 **707**  
I’ll leave you with that lol

 **Saeran**  
Were you…

 **Saeran**  
close to Saeyoung?

 **707**  
NO.

 **707**  
Absolutely not.

 **Ana**  
Wait… Vanderwood?

 **707**  
yes?

 **Ana**  
As in, like his maid Vanderwood??

 **707**  
What

 **707**  
wait…

 **707**  
he told you about me?

 **Ana**  
He said you were his French maid or something.

 **707**  
his…

 **707**  
French maid?!

 **Ana**  
Yeah, and that you were cute and wore frilly outfits.

 **Saeran**  
I think I remember something about that.

 **Ana**  
For some reason I always figured it was to make the other guys jealous?

 **707**  
that guy…

 **707  
** ugh

 **707**  
i wanna say I’d strangle him

 **707**  
but considering his brother’s here

 **707**  
maybe thats bad taste.

 **707**  
anyways

 **707**  
Geez.

 **707**  
Now i shud delete my chat record

 **707**  
and hand this phone over to my boss…

 **707**  
I’d get in hot water

 **707**  
if he finds out i chatted with you two…

 **Ana**  
No! Wait!

 **Ana**  
Help us.

 **Saeran**  
Please…

 **Saeran**  
Vanderwood.

 **Saeran**  
Is there anything else you can tell me

 **Saeran**  
about saeyoung…?

 **Saeran**  
Anything is fine

 **Saeran**  
It’s been almost fifteen years since i last saw him.

 **Saeran**  
And for the last three years…

 **Saeran**  
I couldn’t save him.

 **Saeran**  
I couldn’t get close enough to him before he’d run again.

 **Saeran**  
I only wanted my brother back…

 **Saeran**  
So I could apologize

 **Saeran**  
for being raised to hate him.

“Saeran…”

You put a hand on his shoulder to comfort him as he cries. Lucifer uncharacteristically offers him a box of tissues, while shooting you a withering look.

“What do you hope to gain from asking for this person’s help, exactly?” he grumbles. “You don’t know anything about him, and he works for the enemy. You are just asking to be stabbed in the back.”

“Just let me do things my way, alright?” you dismiss him irritably. “That’s what Diavolo asked you to do, right? Stand back and watch.”

“… Just don’t put your trust in him, or get your hopes up,” he frowns.

 **707**  
I understand.

 **707**  
I heard about you on the news.

 **Saeran**  
Even if i find Saeyoung,

 **Saeran**  
i’m not sure

 **Saeran**  
if we can return to how we used to be.

 **Saeran**  
I might put my life on the line while trying to save him…

 **Ana**  
And I’m here to make sure not to let you.

 **Saeran**  
Ana…

 **Ana**  
What do you think your brother spent his time with the agency doing again?

 **Ana**  
I won’t have it.

 **Ana**  
No more sacrificing yourselves for each other

 **Ana**  
We’re going to find a way through this where you both get to live your lives

 **Ana**  
You deserve to be free and happy

 **Ana**  
And have a normal live

 **Ana**  
And so does Saeyoung

 **Ana**  
I don’t know how we’re going to do it, but we’re going to find a way

 **Ana**  
Maybe Vanderwood can help us with that.

 **Saeran**  
… Thank you, Ana.

 **707**  
Whoa…

 **707**  
That was powerful.

 **707**  
Who even are you lady…?

 **Saeran**  
All I know is

 **Saeran**  
I have this feeling…

 **Saeran**  
It’s telling me

 **Saeran**  
i must find saeyoung.

 **Saeran**  
And it’s promising me

 **Saeran**  
that we will be happy…

 **Ana**  
We’re going to make that come true

 **Saeran**  
No matter what, right?

 **Ana**  
Right!

 **Saeran**  
:)

 **Saeran**  
Yeah…

 **Saeran**  
I will make it come true

 **Saeran**  
as long as you are with me.

 **Saeran**  
I’ll gladly give my entire body and heart if I have to.

 **707**  
What was your name again?

 **707**  
Saeran Choi?

 **Saeran**  
Yeah.

 **707**  
This feeling of yours,

 **707**  
it’s beautiful.

 **707**  
It’s nice.

 **707**  
But…

 **707**  
I wouldnt come find your brother if i were you.

 **Saeran**  
Why not?

 **707**  
Becuz that wont change a thing.

 **Ana**  
What do you mean?

 **707**  
You will be manipulated until you are thrown away, just like your brother was.

 **707**  
You shud keep only good things about your brother and walk away.

 **707**  
Listen to me when i say this – i’ve been with this agency for 15 years.

**707**   
**RUN WHILE YOU CAN.**

**Saeran**  
…….

 **Ana**  
We’re not spending the rest of our lives running.

 **707**  
I’d say runnin is better than putting your lives on the line.

 **Saeran**  
Will I get caught in Rika’s trap

 **Saeran**  
if I go there…?

 **707**  
I’m not sure what’s waiting for you.

 **707**  
but you’ll end up on somebody’s puppet strings, that I can guarantee.

 **707**  
With all my annoyance about him put aside,

 **707**  
i’d say ur brother was a good guy.

 **707**  
He was cool.

 **707**  
So just remember that and walk away.

 **707**  
Sorry…

 **707**  
But i think that’s all i can tell you.

 **Ana**  
Is there anything else you can tell us?

**707**   
**Forget about 707 and run.**

**Saeran**  
…

**707**   
**Run as far as you can.**

**707**  
That’s all.

 **707**  
I’ll delete this log.

 **707**  
And then i’m going to take this phone to my boss.

 **707**  
So i suggest you stop talking in this chatroom.

**707 has left the chatroom.**

“Saeran, are you okay?”

“Yeah,” he says, letting out a breath as he wipes the last of his tears. “Are _you_ okay?”

You squint at him, nudging him playfully. “Just who do you think you’re talking to, mister?”

He chuckles weakly at that. “You’re so much stronger than me… Thank you for being here.”

“There’s nowhere else I would be right now. This is where I’m needed.”

He leans against your shoulder, letting out a soft hum as you tangle your fingers in his hair.

“… Maybe we should listen to this Vanderwood.”

“Lucifer!” you shout at him, shocked. “If we do nothing, Saeyoung _dies_ tomorrow!”

“This situation is far too dangerous for you to be at the center of – for _either_ of you,” he corrects himself, staring sternly down at the both of you. “Whatever Vanderwood seems to regret about his involvement in your brother’s capture, he is obviously afraid of what this agency is capable of. You are two humans against, I suspect, a profoundly criminal organization, with ties to the Prime Minister and who knows who else. What are you possibly going to be able to do against it? You don’t even have a plan.”

You stand and challenge him with a glare.

“Whatever. It. _Takes_. Lucifer,” you assert.

“ _Well_ ,” he folds his arms, admonishing you with a glare of his own. “That may have worked on Vanderwood, but you well know that it won’t work on me-”

“If it was one of _your_ brothers, what would _you_ do?” you challenge.

His scowl deepens at the question, but he fails to answer.

“ _Exactly_. It’s the same thing.” Your turn your back on him, sitting down on the bed next to Saeran and pulling his head to rest against your shoulder to comfort him.

“Raw indignation isn’t going to solve this problem for you, you know,” the demon insists. “So, I hope that you will have a plan worked out by morning.”

“I don’t know how any of us are sleeping after that,” Saeran sighs.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And then they all banged. lmao no they didn't
> 
> This is why I've been skipping the chats mostly - they get so LONG. This was pulled from the game for the most part, save for the parts I spruced up to fit Logan and the out of chat conversations, of course. Also, I haven't edited this really. So, here you go!
> 
> Now to just solve the problem of the meeting in the morning...


End file.
